Most construction vehicles such as backhoes, power shovels and boom cranes have outriggers which are extended downwardly from their side frames to engage the ground and provide lateral stabilization against tipping of the vehicle. These outriggers typically are hydraulically powered to anchor them against the ground when the machine is in operation, and to retract them upwardly to an inactive position when the machine is in transit or not in operation. If the hydraulic system itself is relied upon to maintain the outriggers firmly in their inactive positions, the outriggers have a tendency to droop downwardly due to various factors, such as cooling of the system after operation, and hydraulic system leakage. Any substantial "drooping" of an outrigger is undesirable, particularly when a vehicle is being transported along the highways.
Manually operated mechanical latches of the type shown in Garnett U.S. Pat. No. 3,365,214, for example, have been provided for the purpose of locking an outrigger in its retracted position. The principal disadvantage of such latches, linkages and the like is that the machine operator must dismount from his seat in order to release or lock the outrigger arm. A further disadvantage is that of foulability due to accumulations of dirt, particularly when mud has accumulated under freezing temperature conditions.
It is the principal object of this invention to provide an improved means for restraining an outrigger of the type described in its retracted inactive position.